It is a sports film staple to have an underdog working his way through the lower ranks, through cruel adversity and, finally, reaping the glory that the hero has been trying so hard to achieve. No one has really often focused on the other end of this spectrum. Director Darren Aronofsky has created the character of Randy “The Ram” Robinson; a wrestler who has retired from the professional circuit, making a living through the low paying amateur circuits and working odd hours in a grinding job at a supermarket.

For Randy, the story starts from a bad point and continues to worsen as his life, and career, starts to fall apart. Divorced and estranged from his only daughter, Randy’s only reliable company is a stripper working at his local strip club, and the collection of memorabilia and merchandise from his glory days. With Randy being played by former boxer-turned-actor Mickey Rourke, you feel a large sense of credibility. Not to mention that a lot of the actors in the film are real wrestlers, making the fight sequences leaving you to question if stuntmen were used at all.

A naturalistic and “real” vibe surrounds the film, drawing you closer. You can actually smell the sweat and spandex if you close your eyes. Accompanying the film is the eighties rock soundtrack featuring such classic bands as “Scorpions”, “Guns ‘N’ Roses” and “Quiet Riot”. Heads were banging in that cinema, I can tell you. An enchanting film that makes you think a different way about the sports entertainment industry.